Central Park wins a thriller in Cricket Shepparton T20 grand final

The Tigers defeated Numurkah by eight runs in a topsy-turvy match that had a little bit of everything.

The ball hit the helmet, there was a fielding collision and a bizarre run out, all in the space of a couple of overs.

But after losing both one-day finals and last year’s Haisman Shield grand final, Central Park captain Tyler Larkin had a sense of relief wash over him as he walked off the ground.

“Finally, we got one,” Larkin said.

After winning the toss and electing to bat the Tigers struck 8-132 from 20 overs.

While there were smaller contributions from Jack McCarten (19 runs off 18 balls) and Ramadan Yze (14 off 19), skipper Larkin led with the bat, smoking 51 off 37, including four fours and two sixes.

Larkin hit balls to all areas of the ground with lap sweeps, hook shots and drives.

After the last wicket had fallen Larkin said how glad he was to be a part of a Central Park grand final win.

“It feels like relief, to be honest,” he said.

“We lost last year’s final, we lost this year’s final and we got knocked out of a prelim last year, so we have been a good team for a period of time, but to actually get there and win one feels really good.”

Larkin was proud of his side and the time and effort it had put into training for the tournament, but he was particularly buoyed by the work of two Tiger cubs.

“I want to give our two kids, Haris Hassan and Rory Duffy, a bit of a pat on the back because they have played B-grade for most of the year,” he said.

“They have played in the T20 A-grade for most of this tournament and they have come up and done the job for us.

“It’s understated their efforts throughout the tournament.“

Numurkah bowler Riley Dawson, while a tad expensive economically, was influential for the Blues, taking 3-23, including the wickets of Larkin, Yze and Ethan Baxter.

The Blues’ run chase got off to a rocky start after Tigers all-rounder and cult figure Yze took two wickets in the first three overs of the innings.

From there, it was a game of momentum swings as, at times, both sides looked to take control of the match.

Numurkah’s innings was assisted by opening bat James Du Toit (34 off 39) and number four batter Dylan Grandell (30 off 31).

It was captain Tim Arnel (40* off 27) who came so close to guiding his team home to what would have been a great victory for the club.

The star of the game was opening bowler Yze, who claimed man-of-the-match honours for his effort with the ball, 4-15 from 3.4 overs.

His decisive wickets at both ends of the innings helped lead the Tigers to their grand final victory.

In the final five overs of the match, the tension was palpable around Deakin Reserve as the sun set on the last day of summer.

There was drama as a ball off a free hit went behind the wicketkeeper and hit the helmet, adding a bonus five runs to Numurkah’s scoreline.

A skied ball off the bat of a Blue led to a collision between Baxter and young gun Keiran Hogeboom just outside the inner ring.

While both players were okay after the match, Hogeboom did leave the field for a period of time.

Not long after another skied ball somehow landed in between three fielders, leaving not only the bowler but the batter confused as well, with Numurkah’s Joseph Wills run out after he was left ball-watching in the middle of the pitch.

The last over was filled with suspense as veteran Yze was handed the responsibility with the ball.

A four was struck off the first ball of the over as Numurkah’s target changed to nine runs to win from five balls with two wickets in hand.

Yze wasn’t letting this final slip for the Tigers.

He finished the game with two wickets in three balls to give Central Park the win as the Tigers players roared onto the field to celebrate their victory.